According to Chester E. Finn of the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation, Vietnam "is opening up its education system (both elementary/secondary and postsecondary) to competition and privatization." This, Finn asserts is in response to the "country's accelerating efforts since 1986 to liberalize its economy in order to be more effective on the world market."
Finn attributes the growing demand for improved educational standards through increased privatization is primarily due to Vietnam’s “very high rate of basic literacy,” and the fact that Vietnamese parents express a strong interest in their children’s education.
Although parents are responsible for most education costs, Finn asserts that “demand exceeds supply” and as a result Vietnam is experiencing a surge in “privately-operated colleges and schools…mainly in urban areas.”Finn describes the growing appeal of private institutions in spite of their cost, as a response to the fact that these facilities offer more courses than government-run schools, along with their flexibility to hire non-certified teachers, and their unique nature to “occupy distinctive market niches.”
